


A Learning Experience

by redluna



Series: Kinktober 2019 [5]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Prostitution, M/M, college student!Cullen, silver fox!Dorian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-05
Updated: 2020-02-05
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:02:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22577503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redluna/pseuds/redluna
Summary: Cullen has to be honest--this isn't where he saw his life going in the slightest. But, to be fair, he really is enjoying the ride so far.
Relationships: Dorian Pavus/Cullen Rutherford
Series: Kinktober 2019 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1506200
Comments: 9
Kudos: 84





	A Learning Experience

**Author's Note:**

  * For [emotionalmorphine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/emotionalmorphine/gifts).



> Shout out to the Cullrian discord for putting up with me work shopping this for close to literal ages <3

It might sound odd, but Cullen had always prided himself on being a person of action. He had never seen the point in dawdling in discussions when the only way to be sure of what would happen and how it would need to be resolved would come from jumping right into the thick of it. And, despite what others might claim, it had seen him through more successes than losses.

So, all things considered, this might just be the universe’s way of having a laugh. It certainly did seem a little absurd that, after everything else he had gone through, the one thing that he couldn’t simply power through was  _ paperwork _ .

Although, to be fair, he would challenge anyone not to find their hand stalling over the checkbox that would signal a person’s acceptance of “alternative” work in the establishment. A phrasing that one only had to cast a glance around the bar—where a woman seemed quite content with draping her legs over her partner’s lap or a man that had his hand set loosely around another’s throat—to have an understanding of. Even more so when one remembered that the entire place was an offshoot of an actual hotel.

It wasn’t that Cullen had ever looked down his nose at such work, somewhat sheltered rural upbringing or no. But it was one thing to defend it in the abstract and quite another to actually have to consider being a part of it.

He wouldn’t have even considered it was something he could do, if it hadn’t been for the insistence of the few friends he had managed to make in the city.

Josephine, who had been the one to secure him an application in the first place, had tried to craft the proposal of it with care, at least. But there was only so much hedging that could be met with Cullen’s blank look before Leliana took it upon herself to step in. And he couldn’t claim to feel entirely comfortable with the gleam that came to her eyes when he admitted how little familiarity with it all he would have.

It would be so much simpler to be one of the servers or even a front desk worker, of that much he was certain. He would have to work on securing a better poker face, sure, but the money would still be good.

Even if just a month of work would still be nothing close to what he would be able to secure in a single  _ night _ if he just checked that little box.

“Were you hoping to be alone?”

It took Cullen half a second longer than it should have to realize that that question had actually been directed his way. Enough time, it would seem, for the stranger to have come up with their own answer. That was the only explanation for why the spot next to Cullen at the bar would suddenly be occupied by a man stunning enough to have his brain stalling all over again. The streaks of gray through the man’s dark pulled back hair wound up mattering about as little as the crinkles in the corners of his eyes when he offered up a smile that made Cullen’s stomach flip over.

“Well, as I’ve yet to be pushed from my stool I’ll take that as a positive.”

The bark of laughter came before Cullen could help it; a sharp difference from the cultured, low tones of the other man. Still, despite how quick he was to press his knuckles to his mouth to stifle it, he didn’t miss the spark in the man’s eyes. Much as it might confuse him.

“Should I be more worried of what you think of my manners,” he asked, “or what that says of the people you’ve been with before?”

The man clasped a hand to his chest in mock affront, even as his free one wrapped around the drink had been placed on the bar for him without so much as a glance in its direction. “It’s not I thought ill of you, I assure you,” he said. “I only know that not everyone finds being placed in such a situation appealing.”

Cullen couldn’t actually track how long it took for him to catch on, but he had an idea that it had been too long from how the man had shifted ever so slightly in his seat. Only he could find to stick his foot in his mouth without even having to open it first. At least that meant he could only try to make things better once he did.

“You’re the last kind of person I’d push away.”

The slack to the man’s jaw was almost as unexpected as the breath of laughter that slipped free, although one stung more than the other. But there was a press of fingers against the back of his hand before he could even try to finish standing. 

“You know,” the man said, “I actually believe that to be an honest answer.”

“Of course it is,” Cullen insisted, brow knotted.

The man’s face went soft with something that Cullen couldn’t quite place. “Yes, yes,” he said. “That’s what makes it something of a marvel.” He took a sip of his drink before shaking his head. “Or, at the very least, makes me wonder where Leliana must have found you.”

It was then that Cullen experienced the rather uncomfortable sensation of ice running down his spine. “E—Excuse me?” he offered.

There were a few blinks before the man shifted his hand at last to tap against the sheet of papers in front of Cullen. “You just signed up, no?” He took another swig of the dark liquid within his glass, eyes contemplative. “From what I know our dear lady has a bit of a test. Something about proving your up for the task by scoping out a target.”

“Bit of the wrong way around isn’t it?” Cullen swallowed hard at the look Dorian leveled him under an arched brow. “I only mean...it seems like you found me first.”

“Well, of course.” The man’s hand was back over his now, except, this time, the fingers curled around instead of merely resting in place. “I could hardly allow anyone else to snatch you up, could I?”

The sensible thing to do, of course, would be for Cullen to show his hand now. He knew this place well enough from Leliana’s work stories, if not Josephine’s, to know that, even if the man didn’t take being turned down well, there would be security to have his back.

But there was something oddly warm in those gray eyes and the hold on his hand was loose enough for him to pull away if he chose to. And, besides, maybe this was a way for him to finally get his own answers about whether he really was up to the task of earning more money, regardless of how it needed to be done.

“Good to know you don’t mind honesty.” It was still somewhat mystifying to see the flash of disappointment as Cullen slid his hand free. Just how high the man’s eyebrows managed to lift after Cullen stole his glass to down what was left inside. He was about as proud of that maneuver as how he managed not to cough when the burn of a mix of different, just as strong alcohols hit his empty stomach all at once. “Means I can tell you I would have fought off anyone else who tried.”

The man rose in a single, fluid motion, hand pressed to the small of Cullen’s back without him even realizing when it had gotten there. “You don’t even know who I am,” he said.

Cullen did his best to hold his head high, wanting to meet the man’s ever darkening gaze squarely at the very least. “I thought that was part of the appeal,” he replied.

He already knew that the man had a beautiful laugh, but it took on a whole new quality when being rumbled into his ear as the man pressed in close. “Maybe for some,” was the answer, “but if you think I plan on depriving myself of hearing all the ways you can say my name tonight...you’re quite wrong.”

At any other time, Cullen probably would have rolled his eyes over a line like that. Except the man— _ Dorian _ , he found out before pressed up against the elevator wall—didn’t waste any time in showing him the appeal of it. Because, all things considered, it was fairly hard  _ not _ to react to hearing a man whose jacket alone probably cost more than your entire tuition breathe out your name with increasing reverence. And that had been when the only place Dorian had allowed his lips to fall had been on his throat or skating up along the line of this throat.

It should have been embarrassing that that was all it took was the span of the elevator ride (up to the penthouse suite, just to make the  cliché complete) for Cullen to decide enough was enough. Except all Dorian offered up at having the back of his head snagged was a quiet, inquisitive sound, that was swallowed up so quickly by a kiss that Cullen had to wonder if this had been the man’s plan all along.

Not that he was in much of a position to complain when Dorian was already proving to be a more overwhelming partner than anyone else he had ever done this with. Although, it wasn’t as if any of the people he had been with before had ever had the chance to be quite as  _ handsy _ as Dorian was either.

He was aware that they were moving, bit by bit, but found it a little too difficult to keep track of where that might be when Dorian’s fingers were almost past the band of his pants. It wasn’t until the back of his knees hit the edge of the bed that it all came flooding back to him. He didn’t even realize how tightly his fingers had dug into Dorian until the man’s own grip began to loosen.

Out of all that he had been expecting, however, the hands lifting to cup his face, just so that Dorian could ease his thumb along his cheekbone, wasn’t one of them. It was more of a comfort than he wanted to admit to see the familiar warmth in the other man’s face; the kind that had gotten him here in the first place.

“There’s no way to say this without it sounding trite.” The near huff of a sigh that Dorian offered had Cullen biting back an unexpected laugh. “Unfortunately. But I do mean it when I promise that things don’t have to go any further than what you feel comfortable with.”

He was right, Cullen supposed, it really should have sounded like a line. It was difficult, though, to imagine someone without a care for others managing the attentive dialogue from earlier, let alone initiating it, when an order would have gotten him there twice as fast.

“To be fair,” he offered, because the knot on Dorian’s brow was deepening the longer he stayed silent, “I wouldn’t have let you take me here if I didn’t believe that.” 

It came out bolder than he felt, but it was worth it for watching Dorian’s face turn clear with an immediate smile. The chuckle that followed it, though, was about as dark as the man’s gaze as it swept over him. “I think it’s about time your clothes went then.” A finger trailed up to catch on the collar of the dress shirt Cullen had worn in an attempt to look proper in, but that now felt all too ridiculous. And, as it turns out, inclined to make him feel all too hot beneath it when Dorian  _ tugged _ . “Don’t you agree?”

Any confidence that Cullen had built up seemed to inch away with each bit of clothing he dropped. He could hardly treat it like the other times he had done this with the heavy weight of Dorian’s eyes on him. It certainly didn’t help matters that Cullen didn’t have the slightest clue how to make any of it provocative.

Still, he had a chance of not letting fumbling be too obvious, right up until he realized that there was only one thing left for him to remove. He knew he had hesitated for a beat too long when Dorian moved forward, but, for all that he had to fight the urge to flinch, the hand that came to rest on his chest was gentle as it eased him down. There was a flare of surprise in Dorian’s eyes when he let himself actually flop back against the bed, except he barely had time to wonder if he had done something wrong before that smile was back.

And, even better, Dorian was the one undressing now. Something which he seemed in no rush with, if the way his gaze seemed to track the squirming that each carefully deliberated movement seemed to earn.

All of it was already enough to have Cullen swearing to get him back for it. It just wasn’t until Dorian was easing his trousers down around his hips that he realized how to do it.

Dorian let out a curious noise when Cullen began to prop himself up, a hand already dropping to his shoulder again in a halfhearted effort to stop him. There was a sharp intake of breath from above him when Cullen got his hands on the flimsy things that Dorian called underwear, though, moving them out of the way enough so that he could get his mouth where he wanted.

This, he could manage. So long as he didn’t stop to consider his somewhat limited source of information on the subject. If he did something wrong then Dorian would probably just stop him. Even if he was stopped it wasn’t as if he would get anything worse than a new frame of reference.

Except, if the sounds Dorian was making as he slid his tongue along, however unpracticed, didn’t seem to imply that he should stop anytime soon. It might have gone to his head a little too much, if the immediate affect his efforts to take more into his mouth were any indication.

Even then, however, there were gentle fingers sliding through his hair rather than any realized show of displeasure. “There’s no need to rush,” Dorian said. “We have all night, after all.” The tug on his curls left Cullen struggling for breath for entirely new reason then; all of his focus directing into a single point of unexpected pleasure. “And I do intend to enjoy it thoroughly.”

Right. No pressure then.

Still, the simplest way for Cullen to force back any rising panic was to give himself something else to concentrate on. Just his luck that that got to be trying to piece together what efforts managed to twist Dorian’s voice harder. Or, better yet, as he was quick to realize, got those fingers tightening in his hair again.

As it turned out, unlike in romance (smut, really) novels that Cassandra had foisted on him, it was easier to fit a hand around what couldn’t fit rather than try swallowing it all in one go. From there it was easier to focus on what he knew  _ he _ would like and build from there. 

(Since, honestly, Dorian seemed to like an occasional glance of teeth better than Cullen would expect anyone to if the way the man’s thighs trembled each time was any estimate.)

It gave him enough time to focus on remembering that he had to breathe through his nose, along with fighting to keep each inhale slow and easy as he inched forward to take more. He didn’t even realize how much he had accomplished until his nose landed somewhere against Dorian’s pelvis, which really didn’t have any right to make him go as hot as it did. Maybe he could blame it on how tight it made Dorian’s grip on his hair; the man’s scent actually seeming to swell in response.

“Cullen.” He didn’t think he had ever heard his name spoken like that before—bitten out as though it could physically hurt the person to speak with more force. “That’s enough.”

Cullen drew back as quickly as the hand dropped free from his hair. The shame only grew worse when he had to clear his throat for almost a minute to be able to get any words out. “But I don’t understand what did I—”

The light touch trailing over his shoulders was already enough to startle him, but the kiss pressed to the top of his head had him reeling just a little (determined to pretend there had never been any stinging behind his eyes whatsoever). 

“It’s not what you did wrong,” Dorian said. “It’s what you did  _ right _ . Or did you really want me to come down your throat this early in the night?”

Cullen could feel the heat spreading in a rush across his cheeks, but it still wasn’t enough to keep him from grinning. Even if the continued slingshotting of emotions from one extreme to the other was starting to make him feel a little light headed. “Don’t know,” he said, “that sounds more like a compliment to me.”

The sound of something close to a growl rising in Dorian’s throat was his first sign that he might have pushed things too far. Although, from how it got Dorian kicking off his trousers to push him back down on the bed to better straddle him, Cullen didn’t think he was inclined to care.

“Maker save me from young men,” Dorian grumbled, silencing Cullen’s rising chuckle with a scrape of teeth against his throat. “Whatever am I to do with you?”

Cullen did his best to draw himself back, focusing on the steadying draw of each breath as he took in the flares of pleasure with each mark Dorian seemed determined to rise on his neck or the rocking of the man’s hips against his side.

It was more daring than he tended to allow himself to be, but that did seem to be the theme of the night.

“Well…” Cullen shifted as much as he could in his current position, which turned out to be enough to lock at least one thigh against Dorian’s side. “If you’re its suggestions you’re looking for, I’d  _ really _ like to be fucked now.”

He had just long enough to worry over how still Dorian had become before any attempts at stuttering out something to soothe things over was swallowed up by a searing kiss.

“You are entirely too dangerous,” was what got whispered before Dorian shifted to reach up and over him.

Cullen could only nod at first, a bit too lost in realizing exactly what Dorian was reaching for in the nightstand drawer. The ease of the movement—that he hadn’t even needed to  _ ask _ where to look—told him a good deal more than he needed to know. Which was already quite enough given how much care he had to put into trying not to let his mind get too far ahead of itself.

“Said the pot to the kettle,” he managed.

Dorian shook his head with a laugh more breath than sound as he spread the lube over his fingers. It kept Cullen’s attention focused in the wrong place, it turned out, as he found himself being tugged forward by the man’s free hand, thighs being hoisted up to fit around his waist.

Cullen thought he had been doing well at keeping an even measure of his breaths, doing all he could to focus on the pleasure low in his gut rather than what would have to happen to further it. As with most things you tried to tell yourself not to think about, though, all it took was the first press of Dorian’s finger for the breath to stutter out of him entirely.

“Easy.” Dorian eased his unoccupied hand over Cullen’s knee, voice grown quiet. “You can still tell me to stop, remember?”

It probably didn’t say anything good that his first thought was how little he would learn if he stopped things now. But, still, he couldn’t deny that, if it had to be done, he would actually quite like for it to be here. The situation might not be the most ideal, but at least he had a fair amount of trust in Dorian. And, nerve wracking as all this might be, it wasn’t because he didn’t want it.

“No, it’s not that, I just…” Cullen swallowed hard, hoping that the truth would continue to see him through. “I want to be good at this. That’s...um… That’s all.”

It was a mess from start to finish, of course. Something that, therefore, had no right to turn Dorian’s face as tender as it did.

“Oh, is that all?” Cullen would have found a way to protest if Dorian hadn’t chosen that moment to press his finger in further. It still came with a bit of a burn, his body trying to adjust to the intrusion, but, fortunately, Dorian seemed prepared to give him something else to focus on. “As if you haven’t been since the moment we met.”

That sounded more than a little far fetched, must have shown on his face too, since Dorian only shook his head with an amused spark to his eyes.

“You really are something, you know. Too honest for me to wonder if the modesty is an act. Did you even realize  _ why _ I had to take that seat by you?”

Cullen was somewhere in the middle of nodding when another finger slipped inside, except this time all it brought as a shaky catch of breath. He was doing better at adjusting, at least until Dorian brushed against something that had his hips jerking without meaning and actual yelp slipping free.

And, through all of that, Dorian just kept  _ talking _ . As though he wasn’t threatening to knock the breath right out of Cullen’s lungs with each brush against that spot.

“It’s not that I didn’t already want to—gorgeous thing that you were. But you were drawing people in without even trying. Whoever knew dismissal could be so attractive?”

“B—But I...ah!” Cullen squirmed, not sure how many fingers were actually inside him now. Enough to make his skin feel like it had been drawn all too tight over his body, at least. Not that any of that could matter so long as Dorian kept looking at him like that, all approval and  _ heat _ . “I didn’t dismiss you.”

Dorian hummed, rubbing idle circles around that place deep inside until Cullen jerked, tears blossoming at the corners of his eyes. “Indeed,” he said. “It does do to accept such blessings when one can.”

Cullen didn’t know when he had raised his hand to his mouth, but he bit down on it now all the same, struggling to center himself. “You’re not playing fair,” he said, breath dropping out of him in a rush when Dorian eased back the pressure of his fingers.

“No?” Dorian asked, voice warm even when edged with teasing. “So you’re saying that I  _ shouldn’t _ bring you off right here? It’d be quite a sight to commit to memory.”

Cullen, as it turned out, was far more inclined to throw caution to the wind when pressed this far to the edge. “Sure it would.” It took a try or two, but by the time he managed to rock his hips down successfully onto Dorian’s fingers he could already sense the weight of the man’s gaze turning heavier. “But do you know what memory  _ I  _ want?”

He actually laughed, unable to help it, at how fast that got the fingers tugged free. It earned him a slap on the thigh, which left him more than a little baffled from the flare of pleasure it brought.

For all that he had gone into this with the intent to figure things out, he hadn’t expected to learn quite so many things about himself. It almost made the tearing of the foil around the condom pleasant since that, at least, he had a more sure understanding of.

Not that it was any easier to will away the tension in his chest as Dorian brought one of his legs over his shoulders, spreading the other until he could nudge inside.

It was stupid to focus on how much  _ larger _ it was than the breadth of Dorian’s fingers, but it was still all that Cullen could zero in on. The burn was, perhaps to be expected, worse even with the prep and how slow Dorian was determined to go at first.

Perhaps it was for the best, though, since it brought the edge off of his own pleasure. Despite Dorian’s kindness, he knew it would be more embarrassing than appealing if he were to get off before the other man could manage more than a few thrusts.

Although that wasn’t necessarily helped by how attentive Dorian wanted to be. Staying locked inside once be bottomed out—pressed just near that spot but not enough—was already a little maddening, even as Cullen struggled to catch his breath. By the time there was a tug on his nipples he thought he was entirely justified in spitting out a curse.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” It wasn’t fair in any way for Dorian’s voice to sound so clear or his smile to be that steady. “Too much was it?”

Cullen sucked in a breath before rolling his hips down in response, keeping a careful eye on Dorian’s face so he could see just when that smile flickered. “Don’t know,” he said. “Is it?”

It was all a bit of a blur from there, if only because Cullen found it difficult to keep track of how hard Dorian was actually managing to slam his hips. All he knew for certain was that the headboard was definitely slamming against the wall (something he would be more embarrassed by if any room for shame wasn’t being shoved out of his body all at once). 

He only wished that he could have stood a chance of controlling his mouth. It was difficult to track what was even coming out of it half the time, although, whatever it was, kept making Dorian’s eyes flare so it couldn’t be all bad.

“Should’ve known you’d have me beat.” There was a hint of a laugh in Dorian’s voice, however breathless. “You’re difficult to keep up with,  _ amatus _ .”

Cullen’s brow scrunched a little at the strange word, but it wasn’t enough to keep from taking advantage of the short break to untangle one of his hands from the sheets to link it with Dorian’s own. “Don’t need to say it like it’s a bad thing.” For once, Dorian was the one who wound up being cut off by the roll of Cullen’s hips. “I want to see it.” It was pushing it a bit too far, maybe, but Dorian still had yet to move, “Please?”

The snap of hips was fierce enough to nearly undo him then. Although, if anyone were to ask later, he would claim that was what brought him over the edge, rather than the kiss that threatened to steal the air right out of his lungs.

It wasn’t until later, as he came back down to a warm washcloth cleaning his stomach in gentle movements, that he didn’t actually know what the protocol was for  _ after _ . He might have asked if his tongue didn’t feel so heavy in his mouth. Not to mention that the blanket being tugged over him was just a solid enough weight to keep him grounded when he felt ready to float off entirely.

It wasn’t until he woke up to sunlight streaming through windows, feeling more rested than he had managed to in ages, that he realized he might have made a mistake.

Especially since Dorian was still  _ there _ , trousers pulled back on but shirt unbuttoned and loose as he took a call. It made Cullen want to wiggle all the way under the covers, as though it would somehow help if he could just put it all out of sight. Except then he actually realized what Dorian was talking about and everything ground to a halt all at once.

“And when, pray tell, was anyone going to inform me of what was actually occurring.” The scoff was nothing like what Dorian had been last night, full of enough derision to make Cullen scoot back a little under the covers. “Do not talk to me about  _ assumptions _ ! Not when your people allowed me to…” There was a careful inhale of breath, Dorian’s shoulders slumping forward as he pinched at his brow. “Of course he’s alright, Leliana, but that hardly matters in circumstances like these. Just… Just give me a moment, would you?”

Cullen was still trying to process all of that after the phone had been hung up. When he realized that Dorian had actually turned to fix his gaze on him, he had no idea how long he had spent just staring off into space. “Um...good morning—”

“When were you going to tell me you were a virgin?” The words cut like something physical, locking Cullen in place halfway up on his elbows from where he had been trying to sit up. “Or, better yet, that you didn’t work here at all?”

“I…” Cullen struggled to clear his throat, mouth dry with something more than just too much rest. “I was going to apply here either way. The rest didn’t seem to matter all that much.”

“Is that so?” There was a creeping edge to Dorian’s voice that made Cullen’s stomach roll over in the worst way. “Nothing to letting a stranger handle as though you were… Maker above, Cullen! I could have  _ hurt _ you.”

“But you didn’t.” It was a struggle with how his muscles had gone sore in ways he didn’t even think could happen, but Cullen dragged himself up to sitting all the same. If this conversation had to happen then he was determined to have it as face to face as possible. “I knew you wouldn’t have—I meant that. And, besides, I would have wound up doing it eventually. What would have changed?”

“I could have been gentler for one.” Dorian’s eyes dropped to where the blankets had pooled around Cullen’s waist, the latter of whom followed his gaze only to note with surprise that there were actual bruises on his hips. “What are you even doing with something like this? Leliana said that you’re still in college and—”

“So?” Cullen snapped back. “Plenty of the people here are and their parents aren’t even dead.” It wasn’t until he saw the lift of Dorian’s brow that he realized how far he had actually gone there. “I.. That is…” He dragged a hand across his face. “ _ Fuck _ .”

Dorian must have crossed the space between them at last since his hand dropped to Cullen’s knee a second later. It was a ginger touch, though, as if he still expected Cullen to flinch away from it. “Why don’t you start at the beginning?” he said.

Cullen sucked in a breath, letting it out slowly as he tried to pick the right place to start. “There… There was an accident. A car crash. And I had already started law school, you see? But Branson, my brother, needs to start college too. My sister Mia is barely holding down the fort with Rosalie under foot as it is and I just… I only wanted to help.”

“There are other jobs,” Dorian murmured.

“None that pay as well.” Cullen bit back a sigh, trying his damnedest to inject a bit of levity into his voice. “Besides, if all my customers are like you then it can’t be all that—”

“They won’t be.” Dorian had been staring out the window for quite some time, but his gaze drifted back now. There wasn’t pity there, which Cullen was grateful for, but he couldn’t say he liked the sadness that was there either. “There are other ways, however. If… Well.”

“Say it.” Cullen hoisted his shoulder up, trying for a shrug. “It can’t be any crazier than what I’ve already done.”

That got something close enough to a laugh out of Dorian, at least. “Fair enough, fair enough.” He drummed his fingers across his thigh for a moment, mouth pressed to a thin line. “You could be with me...exclusively.”

“That’s…” Cullen swallowed hard, not sure what to do with how his voice squeaked a bit. It was hard to tell if it was more from nerves or eagerness. If he had to think that hard on it then it was probably an equal mixture of both, though. “Is that something that can work?”

“If you want it to.” There was a hint of a smile back on Dorian’s face, however tentative. “It might entail following me to a few social events and such, but I promise to do my best to make those bearable.”

“O—Oh, but I don’t have any…” 

“I’ll open up an account for you,” Dorian said. “It should be enough to cover your needs. Although you should make sure to tell me if you ever need more. College tends to run up quite a bill as I remember. It has been awhile but still.”

Cullen managed a somewhat weak laugh in an effort to match Dorian’s brighter one. “You… You really don’t have to worry about that,” he said.

“Nonsense,” Dorian replied. “It’s always good form to have a future lawyer in one’s corner.”

Cullen shook his head, trying to center the various thoughts flitting through his head. This was all quite a lot to process, even with a goodnight’s rest under his belt. “I mean it, Dorian,” he said. “Why bother with me? I’m sure there are thousands of people more skilled than me by half.”

“And I don’t want them.” Dorian stood up, concentrating on buttoning up his shirt rather than meeting Cullen’s confused gaze. “I don’t need what I’ve had before; not someone who plays their part well for being able to guess the lines. I  _ like _ you, more than I should, for just being...well, you. Isn’t that enough?”

“I’m still not convinced you won’t just regret it.” Cullen sighed when Dorian turned on his heel, another impassioned speech at the ready if the set of his face was any guess. He set a hand on the man’s stomach, able to feel it deflate under his palm. “But...I’m in.”

“Excellent.” Dorian’s smile—his real, full one—was still as dazzling as his kisses. “Then let’s start by getting a proper meal, yes? Maker only knows what you’ve been surviving on until me.”

“It’s a mystery,” Cullen muttered, but it was a grin as he accepted another kiss.

Besides, he got the feeling he would actually like figuring this one out.

**Author's Note:**

> Dear Lord, finally posting this after spending _months_ feeling like the worst friend ever. My only excuse is that this went through more than a few revisions before settling on this version...which then decided to be as stubborn as humanly possible. 
> 
> Aka: I think you helped to inspire an entire new series??
> 
> Which is about the excuse I have for why this is practically a Valentine's gift rather than a birthday one (thank you for putting up with my silly self).


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